AN ACT Relating to telephone services for low-income persons; adding a new section to chapter 35.21 RCW; adding a new section to chapter 35A.82 RCW; adding a new section to chapter 82.16 RCW; creating new sections; prescribing penalties; and providing an expiration date.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. The legislature finds that universal telephone service is an important policy goal of the state. The legislature further finds that recent changes in the telecommunications industry, such as federal access charges, raise concerns about the ability of low-income citizens to continue to afford access to local exchange telephone service. Therefore, the legislature finds that it is in the public interest to take steps to mitigate the effects of these changes on low-income citizens.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, the definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter.

(1) "Local exchange company" means a telecommunications company providing local exchange telecommunications service.

(2) "Commission" means the Washington utilities and transportation commission.

(3) "Department" means the department of social and health services.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. The commission shall establish lifeline telephone service rates for each local exchange company operating in the state of Washington. The rate of lifeline assistance shall be designed to use the full available lifeline funding offered by the federal communications commission. This shall include, but is not limited to, a waiver of the federal end-user access charge imposed by the federal communications commission. Lifeline rates and the level of surcharge needed to fund lifeline rates shall be adjusted in January of each year or upon a change in the level of the federal end-user access charge. The waiver of the federal end-user access charge ordered in this section shall be available to all eligible subscribers regardless of the grade of service to which they subscribe.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. Costs associated with lifeline telephone service shall be recovered through a surcharge on all other access lines. The surcharge shall be applied equally to all residential and business access lines. All money collected from the surcharge shall be deposited into a lifeline fund administered by the department. Local exchange companies shall bill the fund for their expenses incurred in offering lifeline telecommunication services, including administrative and program expenses. The department shall disburse the money to the local exchange companies. The department shall recover its administrative costs from the fund.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 5. A new section is added to chapter 35.21 RCW to read as follows:

For the purposes of RCW 35.21.712 and 35.21.714, "gross receipts" or "gross income" do not include revenues from surcharges imposed under section 4 of this act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 6. A new section is added to chapter 35A.82 RCW to read as follows:

For the purposes of RCW 35A.82.055 and 35A.82.060, "gross receipts" or "gross income" do not include revenues from surcharges imposed under section 4 of this act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 7. A new section is added to chapter 82.16 RCW to read as follows:

This chapter does not apply to revenues from surcharges imposed under section 4 of this act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 8. The commission and the department may adopt any rules necessary to implement sections 1 through 11 of this act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 9. Lifeline service shall be limited to one residential access line per eligible household.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 10. Local exchange companies shall file tariffs with the commission which waive deposits on local exchange service for eligible subscribers and which establish a fifty percent discount on service connection fees for eligible subscribers. The remaining portion of the connection fee to be paid by the subscriber shall be expressly payable by installment fees spread over a period of months. A subscriber may, however, choose to pay the connection fee in a lump sum. Costs associated with the waiver and discount shall be accounted for separately and recovered from the lifeline fund. Eligible subscribers shall be allowed one waiver of a deposit and one discount on service connection fees per year.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 11. Participants in the following department programs are eligible for lifeline assistance: Aid to families with dependent children, chore services, food stamps, supplemental security income, refugee assistance, and community options program entry system (COPES). The department shall notify the participants of their eligibility.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 12. The energy and utilities committees of the legislature shall review the results of the lifeline program and shall explore by December 15, 1989, whether additional lifeline measures are warranted.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 13. This act shall expire December 31, 1989, unless extended by the legislature.